Lost To Be Found
by Cold Fire Phoenix
Summary: AU. One wrong word and Kagome's changed - into a dog, that is. Mistaken as a member of a uniquely gifted canine race, Kagome must find a way through the mysteries of her birth, change, and restoration before something worse happens - she falls in love.
1. Dungeons and Cauldrons

**Lost to be Found: **_Section One - Dungeons and Cauldrons_

"Do you _want_ me to talk with your mother Higurashi?"

The young woman paled. "N-No sir."

Dark grey eyes narrowed, while the older man before her grimaced. She met his disapproving gaze with her own blue tinted steel eyes. He sighed. "This is getting out of control. I'm going to have to bring in both you mother and grandfather if you don't start shaping up _now_."

Kagome frowned, staring at her hands. "It's not my fault-"

"Higurashi-" Daichi began warningly.

"Well it's **not**!" she said with vehemence, standing abruptly. "I can't live up to a dead woman's standards!"

Daichi sighed once more, leaning back in his chair and rubbing his forehead. "No one," he said, "And I _repeat_, no one, expects you to live up to Kikyou's standards."

"No," Kagome stated bitterly, "You're right. No one expects me to live up to her _standards_. They expect me to _be_ her." With a thump, she sat back down, listless.

All was silent for a moment. Eventually Daichi leaned forward, resting his perfectly manicured hands on the polished oaken surface of his desk. "Kagome," he began, softly, "You know that's not true."

She snorted. "Tell that to everyone out _there_," she stated, gesturing vaguely to the door that led out into the academy's halls.

Growing tired of the discussion they'd often had, Daichi stood. "Higurashi, for your lack of respect due an elder and a teacher, you are ordered to dungeon duty. Report to Tanuki Hachi at three o'clock."

With that, Kagome knew she'd been dismissed. Still, a haughty, "Aye, aye, Captain," flew past her lips before she could stop herself. Earlier mortification returned in full force as she fled Daichi's office, feet blindly slapping the uncaring granite as she turned several sharp corners. Daichi would never have chased her down, but she was certain her 'punishment' had probably just been lengthened due to a further disrespect. Sometimes Kagome swore she didn't even understand why she did what she did.

Now was one of those times.

By the time she paused for a breather, her lungs were on fire and she was completely turned around. Even attending the same school for the past seven years hadn't left her with a blueprint in her mind. Every year she had discovered something new, something to revel in.

She was too tired to enjoy her most recent discovery as she leaned against the cool stone, slowly sinking down. At times like these, Kagome wished she could cry.

She never could. She had forgotten how many, many years past.

Somewhere else on campus, students were hurrying to classes that Kagome herself was enrolled in. Daichi had planned her detention of sorts around her schedule, but she saw no point in over-exerting herself just to sit in a room full of morons whose greatest entertainment came in the form of provoking her. They had been getting quite clever of late, but all Kagome could see when she looked at their round, smug faces was a herd of cruel pigs.

How she hated pigs.

Eventually she rose, standing still for a moment in hopes of re orientating herself. Cursing softly under her breath, she spoke one of the simpler words of power. "J'nta." She softly ran her fingers over her left eye-lid, hoping that she had gotten the incantation correct. For once in this sorry day _something_ should go as she planned. Slowly, and cautiously, Kagome opened her eyes. Briefly her equilibrium was thrown, before she collected herself and rapidly closed and opened her twin orbs. Her focus was off, but she was more than able to cope with that. The day was looking slightly better, if she ignored the later service she was to render.

Kagome began to move, if awkwardly. Her left eye being able to see past the stone that surrounded her, while her right saw only grey, did not help matters. However, if she wanted to make her way back to the front courtyard before she was expected for animal husbandry, such measures were needed.

Though she had to admit, seeing people a good hundred yards away from her move in corridors she couldn't see was disturbing.

Eventually, after several false starts and dead ends, Kagome found herself standing in open air, where if she looked out through the academy's entrance both her eyes captured the same sight. Green pathways lined by ancient, gnarled oaks much like the one that had made Daichi's desk.

The young woman shivered. She didn't want to think about Daichi or Tanuki Hachi right now.

Right now. . . It was time for the outdoors. Or at the very least the kennels.

If she could only remember how to remove this spell before-

"Higurashi! Good to see you up and about, child." A healthy, if friendly, slap on the back sent Kagome reeling forward several steps. She managed a weak grin.

"Nice to see you too, Tamakano."

The robust youkai that stood behind her grinned, rubbing his head sheepishly. "It's Shippou to you, my friend." He straightened as several of her fellow students appeared out of the maw of the academy, collecting in small groups for the moment. "Heard you've got yourself into another spot of trouble, eh?"

Kagome looked skyward. "You could say so."

Shippou grunted, turning around to call out for the others, but Kagome spoke again before he could utter a sound.

"Daichi's given me dungeon duty."

Shippou looked over his shoulder. "That bad, Higurashi?"

"Kagome."

He grinned. "Kagome. That bad?"

"Apparently he thought as much." She paused for a moment. "It's just so damn unfair!"

Shippou started a bit at the anger and hurt in her forceful words. Searching his mind, the adult kitsune seemed to reach a conclusion he liked. "I was thinking of observing the yaks today, but perhaps instead. . ."

Kagome's interest was perked. "Perhaps what?"

He grinned. "Well, the dragon's need seeing to, and-"

Kagome let out a whoop of excitement, smiling so broadly it seemed she was in danger of splitting her face. "Thank you, Shippou, _thank_ you."

Still grinning, more at his younger friends sudden change of mood than anything else, he riveted his attention on the other students in his class. "Yo!" Several heads swung around to peer at him in curiosity. Not enough. A bit more forcefully, Shippou repeated himself. "**Yo**!" Now everyone was looking at the kitsune. He grinned, enjoying his job even more as he pondered the varied reactions he'd get from his announcement.

Better just to see for himself.

"'Ello, everyone. It would appear that today we'll be hanging around the kennels."

So far so good. Other than Kagome, no one knew precisely which kennel he was referring to. He was more than pleased by that thought. "Seeing as how the Dragons," he paused, hearing the many groans that greeted this statement before continuing, "Need their stalls cleaned and stones sifted, we will logically be attending their needs. Off with ya!"

The majority of the students moved slowly, dragging their feet. Kagome was leading them by yards, though the quick steps of Houjou soon brought the fellow to her side. Too happy to care that her number one hound was hanging around her, Kagome whistled. She even found herself forgetting the spell she had cast upon herself. There was little harm in allowing her odd vision to continue for the remainder of class.

Especially when she was with the dragons.

Kagome's dilemma with the academy was the lack of individuality she was allowed. Kikyou, a grand-mistress fifty years earlier, had been an astoundingly powerful woman. Kagome had the astoundingly bad luck to look like that woman - Whom had gone missing forty-five years earlier.

Kikyou had excelled in everything she'd done. Absolutely everything, leaving Kagome little to prove herself in. One area that had at least allowed Kagome to shine was with the dragons - In Kikyou's time at the academy there had not yet been a Dragon Pacification Act in place.

Yet even her success with the draconic beings was passed off to Kikyou, someone she had never met and would likely never care to meet is she still lived. Which was doubtful.

After all, didn't everyone believe Kagome to be the grand-mistress's reincarnation?

Even so, even though her accomplishments with the dragons were belittled, Kagome knew this to be her very own work. Not the predestined work or expertise of another - No, all her own, her unique own.

Houjou was speaking softly, in a tone that could not be mistaken for anything other than demur. He was perhaps the only other person on campus, aside from Shippou, that didn't expect her to do or be the great and all-powerful Kikyou herself.

No, Houjou merely thought her addle-brained.

Which was an admittable improvement, but still. . .

Kagome? One of the morons the academy housed? Sure, she was clumsy at times, or forgetful, but she had a lot on her mind. She wasn't an idiot.

Poor, dear Houjou believed so, deeply. Such a kind boy. Too bad he was such an idiot himself. She might have liked him otherwise.

Pushing into the dark entrance to the dragon's kennels, Kagome paused to inhale the pleasantly singed air.

Even just a glimpse of one of the crimson beauties would suffice to carry her through the day.

The entire day.

The minutes flew, evolving into hours and eventually the end of Shippou's class. Time was approaching for her to make her descent into the lower levels of the school, where the alchemy labs and libraries of old rested.

Kagome grimaced as she stepped back into the unfiltered outside light. "Damn."

Shippou rounded the corner of the kennels - Kagome had seen him coming - Deep in thought. Spotting her standing there, the other restless students already off to their respective dormitories, Shippou flashed her a smile. Approaching, he held out a closed fist. Motioning for her to open her hand, Shippou dropped whatever he had been carrying into her palm, closing her hand with his own as he did so. "Here," he began, smiling kindly if conspiratorially. "A bit of entertainment for you. Chores can be tedious." He winked.

Kagome merely stared back, nodding her head the slightest amount. "Thanks. . . I think."

Turning on his heel, the amused kitsune strode off toward the main hall. Slowly, Kagome opened her hand to see what rested in her palm.

The gem-faceted top took her breath away. She felt her chest constrict, and thought that maybe, just maybe she might be learning to cry once more, but in joy. Alas, that wasn't the case. Anyhow, she tucked the top into her inner-pocket, glad for friends as they were so sparingly given to her.

Friends, and their love.

The feeling was slow to fade as she made her way around the back of the left wing, starting on occasion as she caught sight of some individual inside, only to remember the spell she had cast. When she arrived at the door that led downward to the underkeep, she splayed her fingers across the slick, wooden surface. Warmth infused her hand for a moment, quick to leave.

The door swung open.

Kagome went down.

She started as she heard a slamming behind her, knowing that the door had closed to any others wishing access into the lower bowels of the academy. She hated it down here, and hugged herself tightly as she descended to the bottom. The entire place smelt of mildew and wet soil. She shivered once more.

"Higurashi. Have you arrived at last?" There was no malice in Tanuki Hachi's words, though Kagome felt her hackles rise anyway.

"Yes, Hachi. I have."

She heard a grunt from the rather round Tanuki, following him wordlessly as he entered the dark alchemy lab. Unpleasant and indiscernible scents wafted out from the far corners, giving her a rather odd mental picture that was as frightening in its intensity as it was amusing in its complexity.

Kagome shook her head. With her mind wandering like it did, there was little wonder so many of the teachers at the academy thought her to be disrespectful.

She could never keep her mind on the topic.

A broom handle was roughly shoved at her, delayed reflexes on Kagome's part saving the old-style wooden contraption from hitting the uneven ground. She felt the darkness begin to pull in around her as she tightly gripped the broom's handle. It wasn't until the evenly spaced crystals burst into white flames of light that she came to understand Hachi had spoken. One of the middle words of power, no less.

Her dual vision came to focus on his form. He spoke, slowly, as if every word cost him greatly to share with her. Slightly annoyed, Kagome forced herself to pay close attention.

She didn't need her mother being involved in this.

"You will sweep the floors and see to arranging the shelves into a presentable order. You will also take the third string herbs and put them in their respective places - Even you should have no trouble with that."

For once she wasn't being admonished for not being exactly what was expected - Tanuki Hachi was only commenting on her weaker sense of smell. On her humanity.

That was something she could well understand.

Tanuki Hachi moved off, slowly, to the far east corner, where a cauldron boiled. Imagining the youkai dressed as the traditional apprentice and slaving over one of various noxious brews such apprentices were expected to make had Kagome stifling her laughter.

The look that Tanuki shot her said he did not appreciate her effort. Nor her humor.

Suppressing a sigh, Kagome absently brushed her hand across the surface of the jeweled top before focusing on what task lay ahead of her. Making her way to the corner opposite Tanuki Hachi, she began to sweep. She hoped to avoid Hachi as much as possible - her past with the youkai hadn't been bad, but it hadn't been great either. He was close to thinking and _expecting_ the worst from her.

She hated those kinds of biases.

The monotony of her work left her mind free to wander, and wander it did indeed. She reviewed what had gone on in the kennels, smiling at the memories that had been made that day. A testy queen had struck out at one of her classmates, the scales of her head unintentionally breaking the unlucky boy's fragile skin. Shippou had left it to Kagome to sing to the agitated queen, a chore that greatly pleased her. If there was anything she loved more than the work she did with the dragons, it was being able to sing to and with them.

As the queen had drifted off, Kagome's dual vision caught the reason why the dragon had been on edge: She was expecting. Kagome suspected that Shippou already knew, but her own method of discovery was equally as pleasing as the discovery itself.

Which reminded her. "Hachi, how do-"

She stopped, watching with disbelief as Tanuki Hachi's tail followed the rest of his considerable bulk out the door. "Hachi?" she managed to squeak after a time, eyes widening.

He had left.

Just. . . Upped and gone.

Wasn't he supposed to supervise her? Wasn't he supposed to have been mixing up some. . . Some. . . Some _potion_?

The teachers at the academy slipped another notch in her regard.

Even so, as Kagome's gaze rested upon the simmering cauldron, curiosity began to eat away at her mind. Her dual vision gave her no answers, merely observing a rather dark something inside the kettle's confines.

With a glance back at the door, she began moving closer. She paused once more, within reaching distance. Her hands, which lay clenched in fists at her sides, could touch the rim of the cauldron if she so chose.

Yet that didn't draw Kagome's attention as completely as the old scroll pressed between two glass panes on the rough-hewn table. The archaic cryptoids, ancestors of the modern runes the academy taught its students, glimmered iridescently in the crystal light. Chills shot up her spine. "What could Tanuki possibly wish to use this for?"

In spite of herself, the young woman edged closer to the scroll, scanning the lines of characters to find that she understood, if sketchily, what was being said.

"Et canvin laru'ne kian'tr ick nashje-" she paused, thinking. The spell was calling for permanence, though of what she couldn't say. She came closer, rubbing off some of the dust that had settled unto the glass pane from her duties on the opposite side of the room. Odd that such an old scroll lacked even the simplest protection spell.

Something moved in the hallway outside the room's door - some small sound in the darkness where the light couldn't reach. Kagome started, knocking against the cauldron and sending some of what was inside over its lip to the ground. "Great," she moaned, wringing her hands. "I screwed that one over."

Her eyes went to the entrance, but no large bulk came stomping through to tell her how moronic she was or how much she had messed up this time. One minute passed, and then another. Her gaze shifted once more to the curious scroll. She continued to speak the words out loud. "Hika no armni j'tsu et kian'tr j'tsu et canvin." Nothing else was written, though pictures of various herbs and rodents along with proscribed measurements of said substances decorated the rest of the aged yellow paper. Kagome stared at one she couldn't quite understand, one of a star caught within a circle. . .

Yanking forcefully enough on the small amulet hanging around her neck to snap the leather bindings, the young woman frowned. Kagome held the broken leather straps with her fingers. She was interested quite suddenly in the engraving on the pouch; The engraving that had been on the pouch since her fifteenth birthday. A circle within a star. The exact opposite of the inked drawing before her.

She drew in breathe slowly, filling her lungs before exhaling at the same slow speed. Kagome had always thought there was something more to the engraving, but never knew what. Now she had another piece of the same puzzle, but still no inkling as to why.

Voices echoed outside in the corridor, and Kagome's head and hands flew up in astonishment. She didn't want to be caught, not like this. She couldn't even begin to imagine what-

In shock, she realized that her amulet was no longer in her hand. In desperation she used her linking word of power, speaking the amulet's true name as she had decided upon these years past. "Shikon!"

The amulet appeared in her hand, saving her from having to call out its lesser title. With a start, she noticed it was damn. _It must have fallen into the caul-_

Agony pierced her skull, sending her to the ground in an undignified heap as she cradled her head, eventually lashing out in pain but striking nothing more than the sturdy table's base.

Every inch of Kagome's skin burned, burned and peeled within the same terrifying second as she clutched her arms to her chest. The pain was so great she couldn't make a sound, and as every bone within her body began to shift she couldn't even move. Her eyes were closed, both seeing only the red blankness that had enveloped her mind.

A few seconds later, it was over. Kagome lay panting, blinking rapidly. _What the hell was that about?_ The memory of pain made her cringe, then shoot to her feet.

All four of them.


	2. Canis Fenris

**Lost to be Found:** _Section Two - Canis fenris_

Slowly Kagome looked down as best she could at where her hands should be. In their place were furry paws, like those of the purebred dogs in the kennels.

Exactly like them.

Realization made its sluggish way through Kagome's fogged mind, so slowly that she was attempting to speak aloud in a voice recognizable as her own before she finally understood.

She'd changed.

Majorly.

The next thing that crossed her mind was much less earth-shattering.

Her clothes were absolutely _confining_. At times the garments could be uncomfortable when she was in a more. . . Normal. . . State, but now. . .

Now she was having trouble breathing.

The words that had been on the tip of her tongue rolled off as a choked rumble, "R'kggr." Blessedly, the word of power managed to come across unmangled, sending all she had been wearing into the Fifth Enclosure, a magical storage space of sorts. _There is no way,_ she thought, _No way in _hell_ this can get any worse._

Footsteps echoed in the dark hall, forbidding.

_I thought too soon._ Kagome awkwardly scurried behind one of the other tables, absently noting that her mangled command had worked after all.

Heavy footfalls paused outside the door, slowly beginning again as their owner enter. Tanuki's voice came out as a low, slightly surprised and annoyed breathing. "Higurashi?"

Kagome cringed from where she sat, shoulders hunched, behind her temporary refuge. Afraid that the youkai would further enter the room and discover her, she let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding as the footsteps retreated.

The feeling of relief was quick to be replaced by an urgent need to escape. The dungeon classroom was rubbing at her frayed nerves even more so than before, leaving her mind buzzing.

Kagome craved release.

Without any conscious decision, her feet coordinated themselves into a four-beet pace that took her out of the room and through the dark of the hall with incredible speed. Up the stairs she went, stopping in her head-long rush only to encounter the slowly closing door and the strong scent of what she assumed to be Tanuki: A thick, musky smell.

Diving forward, Kagome slid on soft paws into the trodden pathway to the aptly named dungeons.

A hand clamped down on her back, tripling her heart rate in fright. A familiar voice, using a familiar tone (though never before one used on herself), crooned. Kagome felt alien objects swivel on her head, and knew with sinking certainty that they must be her ears. Her new ears, as it were.

"Hey there, little one, why are you out here all alone? You should be back in the kennels, sweetheart, with the rest-"

Kagome turned her head as the flow of words stopped. Some part of her was glad she had understood their meaning, having not lost as much as she could have, but as her eyes met Shippou's she knew something wasn't right.

Shippou frowned, one clawed hand searching her newly acquired ruff while the other snaked its way to her unfamiliar ears. Kagome couldn't have moved if she wanted to, so she stood trembling. "Where's your tags, little girl? You look too well fed to be a feral, but then," Shippou continued, wrapping a clawed hand around Kagome's muzzle and drawing her face around to meet his, "You're a step above the rest, aren't you? You're not meant for our kennels, pup. We aren't equipped to deal with Canis fenris."

Kagome felt an unfamiliar tickle in her belly and throat, a low moaning whine arising while Shippou still stared into her eyes. _See me!_ she urged silently. _ See me, Kagome! It's me, Shippou, Kagome! I'm not a Canis fenris, not one of them!_

The youkai's eyes hardened. "Normally your kind are too intelligent to come around here." One of his hands reached back behind him, into one of various pockets Kagome assumed.

The urge to flee returned, full force.

"Calm down, girl, calm _down_!" Kagome's attempt to escape was thwarted as the adult youkai threw his weight onto her back, forcing her to the ground. He called out, hurting her sensitive ears and provoking yet another unwanted whine from the depths of her belly. "Hachi! **Hachi**!"

The robust Tanuki poked his head around the corner, only seeing Shippou at first. "What is it you want, Tamakano?" For once the Tanuki sounded annoyed, rather than just blatantly uninterested. "I've got to go see Daichi about that Higurashi, I can't just. . ." he trailed off. "What's with the mutt?"

Kagome could feel Shippou's chest rumble in what she thought was laughter. In surprise, she heard her friend growl. _Learn something new everyday._ Her limbs ached as she labored to breath under Shippou's added mass. _Some better than others,_ she added in disgust.

"This is no mutt, Hachi, and that you _well_ know. She's a fenris."

The Tanuki's round eyes bulged. "H-Here?" he managed to squeak before composing himself. "I. . . See. Still, what do you expect me to do?"

Kagome could hear Shippou's teeth grind in frustration. "I would _like_ you to help me _kennel_ her. Then we can go to Daichi on both Kagome and this little girl."

Tanuki stepped around the corner, walking slowly toward Kagome's pinned form. "Little? That thing's as big as _you_ are."

Something tickled Kagome's nose, stirring something deep within her. The spicy, salty scent was achingly familiar, yet she couldn't say just what it was. _Fear,_ she realized, watching Tanuki approach. _He's afraid._

_He's afraid of me._

Shippou spoke once more. "She's a female, not a thing, and yes, she _is_ little for her kind. I would have thought she was just one of the kennel dogs if it wasn't for her eyes."

Both Kagome and Tanuki blinked in surprise. _But. . . But I'm not a fenris! What could you have seen, Shippou, to make you think that of all things?_ Tanuki voiced her questions, if unintentionally. "Her eyes?"

Shippou nodded slightly, tightening his grip around Kagome's shoulders. "She understood what I was saying, Hachi."

Hachi shrugged. "So? Most animals recognize tone. It's not like they really know what we say."

"Not a fenris, Hachi. They know. _She_ knows. She _knew_ exactly what I was saying, what I was going to do."

"So that's why-"

"**Yes**, that's bloody well why I'm draped over her back! Now, will you _please_ just go get one of the harnesses from the dragon kennels?"

Tanuki nodded, then paused in amazement. "The _dragon_ kennels?"

By now, even Kagome was annoyed with Tanuki. "_Yes_, the damn dragon kennels Hachi, now can you _please_ just get the damn harness?"

Kagome's extremities were beginning to feel numb. She struggled a bit, throwing Shippou around as she did so. At that sign of fiestiness, Tanuki took off at a run that belied his bulk.

Had Kagome thought the situation to be even faintly amusing for her, she would have laughed. As it were, with her teacher talking to her like he did with the other animals in his care, Kagome found precious little to be amused about. What exactly had that scroll been for? What had been in the cauldron?

When was she going to go back to normal?

Perhaps the only limited comfort was that her attempts at spells had worked earlier, and that the one she had cast for true sight earlier was still active. Not that she could actually remember how to undo that particular spell anyhow.

Which reminded her - Why not try to use the words of power she knew now, when she most needed them? _ What about Light? No, that won't do anything. . . Maybe wind? Or maybe even- _ The thought was never completed as the cool leather dragon muzzle slipped up her snout and tightened cruelly. She caught Shippou's mutter, and the heavily breathing Tanuki finally registered as her fore paw was forcefully manipulated into the harness legs. "Finally, fat old dotard."

"I. . . Resent. . . That," Hachi managed to huff out, gasping for breath. Shippou chose to ignore him as he pulled back Kagome's head to keep her still.

She had decided, somewhat unwisely, to begin fighting as soon as she had understood that the kitsune's weight had shifted.

Kagome felt the final buckle tightening over her left hind, effectively hobbling her. Shippou began to slowly coax her to stand, helping right Kagome when she stumbled. Oddly enough, she felt somewhat touched, right up until the point he referred to her as a little girl for the thousandth time.

Then she concentrated on ignoring him and walking.

Whenever she had walked to, around, or in the kennels in the past, Kagome had never truly understood the differences in scent, noise, and inexplicably _feel_ each separate building had. There was the thick, rich airy scent to the avians, the loamy scent of the rabbiteer's, and the pleasant singed cinnamon and spice of the dragons.

Shippou tied her to the containment posts outside the dragon kennel, pulling her into the bodily restraints so she could barely move. "Don't worry, little girl," he began reassuringly, patting her head absently, "This is only temporary."

Kagome had the sinking feeling that this wouldn't be the case. She watched, standing stock still on all four feet, as Shippou and Tanuki moved off toward the main building, presumably to locate Daichi.

Ironically, Kagome was the reason for both visits. Tanuki to complain of her disappearance, and Shippou of her sudden appearance as one of the most reclusive creatures on the planet - The highly intelligent Canis fenris.

Never mind she was only a mockery - She knew as well as any other student that had taken Shippou's animal husbandry classes what was done with the fenris when they were located. The Hunters would claim them, train them, and use them to hunt down the Rouges. Even thinking about the Rouges, twisted youkai that had long ago given into their acquired taste for the taking of life, made her shiver.

There was only one Hunter that was on decent terms with the academy. A Hunter with a reputation as a cold-hearted, aristocratic youkai. One whose name aptly fit his job description.

Sesshoumaru.

If Kagome wasn't mistaken, he'd be paying a little visit before long. With her re-emergence as a fenris the driving factor behind said visit.

Kagome wished she had never seen that damn scroll.

Voices spoke in the distance. Her ears flicked back to better pick up the low murmur she had caught earlier.

"You're kidding me, Tamakano. In all of our history as an academy we've never had a fenris walk on grounds. They're too intelligent to come near here, especially considering our affiliation with Sesshoumaru." That was Daichi, no mistaking his pedicured voice or slightly off putting scent of lilacs. Kagome idly wondered why she hadn't noticed the repugnant smell before.

"Daichi, listen to me! I found her by the-"

Footfalls that she had been unconsciously following stopped. "Female? Tamakano, did you just say _female_?"

Shippou spoke after a moments pause. "Well, yes, she is female, but-"

"Get rid of her." Daichi's voice had just turned into ice, unfashionably cold.

Tanuki finally spoke. "Surely, Daichi, that's a bit of an over-reaction on your part. She's just an animal-"

"An _animal_? An **animal**? The fenris aren't _just_ animals, and the females are the worst of them! Can't you recall the legends behind them?"

"They're only legends, Daichi! You can't just kill her over a legend that has never been proved as fact," Shippou pleaded.

"Never been proved as fact, eh, Tamakano? You know _why_ they don't have the facts on them, Tamakano?" Daichi spoke lowly, an edge to his voice Kagome caught and disliked immediately.

Shippou's own voice held a glint of steel. "I know perfectly well why, Daichi. I'm _just_ saying keep her for the night, and call Sesshoumaru over to pick her up in the morning."

"I'm afraid I have to agree with the kitsune on this one, Daichi. One night can't hurt, plus," the Tanuki added, "Think of the money we'll get from Sesshoumaru. You know the academy needs whatever it can get."

Daichi sighed. "Fine. But," he continued, a razor-sharp edge cutting through the minor sounds of joy that Shippou was emitting, "She's in the queen pens for the night. If anything can keep her under control, those queens can."

Shippou didn't like that; Kagome could smell his distaste from where she was confined. At least that's what she assumed it was. The bitter taste it left in her mouth wasn't boding well for agreeableness.

"Fair enough, Daichi."

Kagome heard someone turn on heel, assuming that it was Daichi. "Hachi, you will assist Tamakano with the fenris. After that, you will be searching for Miss Kagome Higurashi." The edge returned to his voice. "She was in the damned dungeons, man. Where could she have gone? You _must_ find her. She is imperative to this academy and. . . Never mind. Begone." The footsteps faded, carrying their owner back toward what was most likely a comfortable bed and warm room.

Kagome could look forward to the straw and sands of the dragon queen kennels.

". . . I'm not a man, and it's not my problem that the little brat's gone AWOL."

Kagome growled slightly at the comment as two separate pairs of feet began moving toward her.

"He just hasn't gotten over himself yet, Hachi. He's human, and he lords that over his youkai staff more than anyone else. He's big on that equality bull, but all he ever preforms is a mockery of ideals he doesn't really care for."

Tanuki sighed. "I feel pity for that poor brat. It would almost be better for her if she just stayed gone."

Shippou snorted. "Or worse. At least here she's safe. Out there," he paused, having reached the hindmost of Kagome's restraints, "Who knows what would happen."

"You think she's really the Grand-Mistress's reincarnation?"

For a while, Shippou merely worked on undoing the easily done-up bindings. Finally, he spoke. "That, and then some. No soul's reborn exactly as it was before. Kagome, she's. . . Different, in a good way. She just wants what everybody wants in the long run."

Kagome's ears had perked. _I want what everybody else wants?_

"What's that?" Tanuki asked, his tone speaking of disinterest but his scent more telling of his curiosity.

"Love." Grabbing the middle of the harness that crossed Kagome's back, Shippou forced her to walk out backward as he cleared his throat. "You going to help or what, Hachi?"

Silently, the Tanuki took hold of the harness opposite of Shippou. Kagome moved along with them, tripping slightly every time her coordination became too much for her. The two youkai silently bore with her, lost in their own thoughts.

Which left Kagome to her own.

The kennel's sharp, hot smell assaulted Kagome's sensitive nose, producing a low pounding headache as she tried to interpret information she had no idea could be analyzed.

Shippou silently pointed to a stall door, Tanuki nodding grudgingly as he unhooked the latch and slowly pushed the outer door inward. An awkward shuffling later, Kagome found herself pinned between the two youkai as Shippou closed the stall door. He kneeled next to her, unhooking her hind leg and loosening the straps around her muzzle. "Behave yourself and you'll be just fine little girl."

Kagome was too disorientated to bother with a final attempt at escape as Shippou pushed her into the stall with its draconic inhabitant. A slightly interested snuffling alerted Kagome to the dragon's presence, but she had know that the queen was going to be there from the words exchanged between the three adults.

All she could do now was wait and leave the queen well enough alone. Morning would come soon enough.

If she lived that long.


End file.
